2007-04-25 02:05:20 -

KENT, Wash., April 24 /PRNewswire/ -- ARI Technologies, Inc. (ARI) of Kent, Washington, a waste management technology developer, signed an agreement with a Japanese Consortium comprised of a major steel manufacturer, a leading general contractor and other prominent Japanese companies that are engaged in industrial waste processing to conduct an asbestos destruction and recycling demonstration consistent with guidelines established by the Japanese Ministry of Environment (MOE).

The demonstration is scheduled to take place this summer using ARI's Thermochemical Conversion Technology (TCCT) processing facility in Tacoma, Washington, USA.

ARI Japan Corporation, a

joint venture between ARI and another Japanese party, has taken the role in promoting the TCCT asbestos recycling business in Japan. The Washington Department of Trade and Economic Development (CTED) and the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) have been instrumental in helping facilitate the success of the joint venture.

Conducting the asbestos treatment demonstration is a major step toward establishing commercial asbestos processing facilities in Japan. The Japanese Consortium intends to begin operating its first commercial asbestos processing facility in Japan by September 2008 with additional plants to follow soon thereafter.

ARI owns the patented, EPA-permitted, asbestos treatment process that destroys asbestos through mineralogical conversion. The process results in 100% destruction of asbestos fibers and produces a product that is inert, non- toxic, unregulated, and suitable as a recycled construction aggregate. The technology has also been applied to other hazardous wastes and is permitted by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to treat PCBs as well as asbestos. The technology is also effective for immobilization of metals and radionuclides in certain wastes.

ARI is a privately owned company that builds waste treatment systems and licenses the technology to users globally. Please visit http://www.aritechnologies.com/

Source: ARI Technologies, Inc.